Seattle City Wire

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, currently serving in the U.S. Congress representing Washington's 7th district, recently addressed several critical issues on her social media platform. Her posts highlight concerns about USAID operations and the impact of budget cuts on organizations combating human trafficking.

On February 7, 2025, Rep. Jayapal shared that "USAID purchases medical equipment — like oxygen tanks — to support health clinics in some of the world’s poorest countries." However, she expressed concern that "Now, that equipment will sit in warehouses and ports, with the staff that should be transporting them having been ordered to stop working." "Original quotation"

In another post on the same day, Rep. Jayapal highlighted domestic implications of this freeze: "This freeze also hurts people in the United States." She noted that a significant portion of USAID's mission involves food aid sourced from U.S. farmers. According to her post, "about 41% of that food comes from US farmers — worth hundreds of millions of dollars annually." The halt in operations could result in wasted food and unpaid farmers. "Original quotation"

Further emphasizing the broader impacts of budgetary constraints, Rep. Jayapal mentioned groups combating human trafficking facing financial challenges: "Groups that work to combat human trafficking — from those whose efforts span the globe to those who focus on Latin America — have had their budgets slashed." She cited an example where an organization in Ecuador had to lay off staff while others in Colombia ceased operations entirely due to these cuts. "Original quotation"